"Have you heard? The Dragon Emperor Palace, which hasn't been seen for years, has taken action again."
"What? The Dragon Emperor Palace has reappeared?"
"That's right. The Dragon Emperor Palace has emerged once more."
"Damn, what could possibly be important enough to bring the Dragon Emperor Palace out?"
"Not sure, but it seems the Palace Master himself issued an order—apparently to hunt down someone named Lie Zhankuang."
"Lie Zhankuang? Never heard of him. Who is this guy to warrant the Palace Master's personal decree?"
"Well… I don’t know either!"
On his way to Alchemy Emperor City, Chen Chang'an happened to overhear the news about Lie Zhankuang.
So this guy finally crawled out from under the Heavenly Pool? Did he break through to the Emperor realm already?
But how did he end up being hunted by the Dragon Emperor Palace so quickly?
The Palace Master of the Dragon Emperor Palace, Long Wuqi, was a peak-level Emperor realm cultivator. Few knew that he was a contemporary of Mu Yunyao.
Back in the day, Long Wuqi was nothing more than a lackey in the eyes of Mu Yunyao and her peers—hardly worth mentioning.
After all the true prodigies of that era, except for Mu Yunyao, ascended to the higher realms, Long Wuqi finally had his chance to shine, climbing step by step to the peak of the Emperor realm.
Because of this, Long Wuqi firmly believed that he was now the strongest in the entire Tai Xuan World.
The other peak-level Emperors were merely latecomers, unworthy juniors in his eyes.
Moreover, while there were many Emperors in the Tai Xuan World, not just anyone could reach the peak of the Emperor realm.
At most, there were no more than ten peak-level Emperors.
And once they reached this level, their sole pursuit was further breakthroughs—ascension to the higher realms.
Matters of slaughter and conflict were long beneath them.
Yet Lie Zhankuang had somehow managed to hit Long Wuqi’s fatal weakness—ugliness.
Long Wuqi, for all his arrogance and pride, was cursed with an unsightly appearance, and he despised nothing more than being called ugly.
Lie Zhankuang had paid a heavy price for this, hiding beneath the Heavenly Pool for thousands of years.
The Dragon Emperor Palace wasn’t located on land but on an island called Heavenly Dragon Island, surrounded by deep seas. They rarely ventured into the Central Heaven Domain.
But now, unexpectedly, the Dragon Emperor Palace had reappeared—with one clear goal: to find Lie Zhankuang.
"Tsk tsk tsk, after all these years, the Dragon Emperor Palace is making a move?"
"Did Lie Zhankuang do something else the moment he crawled out of the Heavenly Pool?"
Even Da Huang was curious. No matter how powerful Long Wuqi was, could he really have detected Lie Zhankuang’s emergence so quickly?
And after all this time, had he still not let go of this grudge?
Talk about holding a grudge.
"Not sure. Only Lie Zhankuang himself would know." Chen Chang'an chuckled and shook his head.
He was curious too, but judging by the chatter around him, no one seemed to know the full story.
Still, the sudden appearance of the Dragon Emperor Palace in the Central Heaven Domain had shocked many.
Five thousand years ago, the Dragon Emperor Palace had announced a full retreat into seclusion, and not a single member had emerged since.
For five thousand years, most people had nearly forgotten the Dragon Emperor Palace even existed.
"I once heard my ancestor say that the Dragon Emperor Palace is incredibly powerful, and they only recruit cultivators above the Void Refinement realm," Gu Fengyao said.
"But the strange thing is, the Dragon Emperor Palace has never had any younger disciples in all these years."
"It’s almost like… none of them marry or have descendants."
"My ancestor said the Dragon Emperor Palace and Long Wuqi are both too peculiar, so if you ever encounter them, avoid them at all costs."
Hearing this, Chen Chang'an also found it odd.
Any faction needed a steady influx of new blood, so how could the Dragon Emperor Palace have no younger generation at all?
Weren’t they worried about their legacy dying out?
And despite this, they chose to enter seclusion for five thousand years?
Weird.
Truly bizarre.
"We’ve had no dealings or grudges with the Dragon Emperor Palace, so we’re fine," Chen Chang'an said.
"But—"
"Damn, what’s going on?"
Just then, Chen Chang'an spotted Lie Zhankuang—disguised and sneaking around.
What kind of coincidence was this?
Did Lie Zhankuang sniff him out like a bloodhound?
Oh no.
Judging by Lie Zhankuang’s movements, he was heading straight for them.
How did he even know they were here?
"That guy’s really something."
"His nose is that sharp?" Da Huang was equally surprised. How had Lie Zhankuang tracked them down?
"What’s wrong?" Gu Fengyao and Gu Xian'er were confused.
"Brother Chen, I finally found you!"
"Come on, let’s go. Hurry!"
Lie Zhankuang was wrapped up tightly, his face completely concealed. If not for recognizing his aura, they might not have even identified him.
"Are you insane?"
"Huh? No, I’m not."
"Then why are you looking for me?"
"Look, just come with me. I’ve made a huge discovery—something important I need to tell you."
Seeing how serious Lie Zhankuang was, Chen Chang'an frowned slightly. After a moment’s hesitation, he stood up and followed him.
Lie Zhankuang led Chen Chang'an and the others away, flying to a remote wilderness.
"Here, this place is hidden."
He guided them into a cave—dark and seemingly endless.
Chen Chang'an could tell the cave sloped downward, likely extending several thousand meters deep.
"How did you even find a place like this?" Chen Chang'an asked, puzzled.
"Huh? Oh, I dug it myself a while ago."
Dug it himself?
A freaking Emperor, digging random holes in the wilderness for fun?
At the end of the cave was a sizable chamber. Once inside, Lie Zhankuang cautiously set up a barrier before lighting the oil lamps around them.
"Now we should be safe," Lie Zhankuang said with a grin.
"Are you seriously this paranoid?"
"And what exactly did you do? How long have you been out of the Heavenly Pool?"
"Why did the Dragon Emperor Palace immediately come after you the moment you emerged?"
"Besides, you’re an Emperor now. Why run? Fight them!" Chen Chang'an snapped.
Lie Zhankuang’s face twisted into something between a grimace and a sob.
"Ancestor, you’re my damn ancestor. You think I don’t want to? I want revenge too!"
"But—but I can’t beat them! I just can’t!"
"Back when I was at the Supreme realm, they sent ten Undying realm experts after me."
"Now, after finally breaking through to the Emperor realm, guess what?"
"Ha! The Dragon Emperor Palace sent ten Emperors!"
"Tell me, how am I supposed to fight that? What chance do I have?"
Ten Emperors?
How could the Dragon Emperor Palace have so many Emperor-level experts?
"Impossible!"
"My family's ancestor once said that Long Wuqi, the master of the Dragon Emperor Palace, is incredibly powerful, but the Dragon Emperor Palace doesn’t have many truly talented or promising individuals."
"Most of them are people recruited along the way. Even if some break through to the Emperor Realm, there definitely wouldn’t be too many."
"How could they casually send out ten like this?" Gu Fengyao exclaimed in shock.
"Your family’s ancestor? What the hell does your ancestor know? Who even is he?" Lie Zhankuang scoffed dismissively.
"His ancestor is Gu Fenghua. Ever heard of him?"
"Gu Fenghua? Never heard of him. Wait… the Gu family?"
"You… uh, who exactly are you?"
Lie Zhankuang turned to Gu Fengyao, his tone suddenly nervous.
"Gu Fengyao. My ancestor is Gu Fenghua. Got a problem with that?" Gu Fengyao glared at him indignantly.
Holy shit, the Gu family’s ancestor?
Isn’t that a peak-level Emperor?
What the hell did I just say?
First, I pissed off the Dragon Emperor Palace, and now I’ve offended the Gu family?
Two peak-level Emperors?
Damn it!
"Bro, just kill me already. Living is too damn hard!"